Most Popular Books by Ann Rule

In this true crime work, New York Times best-selling author, Ann Rule investigates the case of a woman, Ronda Reynolds, whose supposed suicide may not be what it seems.

“America’s best true-crime writer” (Kirkus Reviews) presents an all-new collection of crime stories drawn from her private files and featuring the riveting case of a fraudulent doctor whose lifelong deceptions had deadly consequences. The inspiration behind the upcoming Lifetime movie event Desperate Hours. Dr. Anthony Pignataro was a cosmetic surgeon and a famed medical researcher whose flashy red Lamborghini and flamboyant lifestyle in western New York State suggested a highly successful career. But appearances can be deceiving—and, for the doctor’s wife, very nearly deadly. Now, the motivations of the classic sociopath are plumbed with chilling accuracy by Ann Rule. Along with other shocking true cases, this worldwide headline-making case will have you turning pages in disbelief that a trusted medical professional could sink to the depths of greed, manipulation, and self-aggrandizement where even slow, deliberate murder is not seen for what it truly is: pure evil.

Dr Anthony Pignataro was a cosmetic surgeon and a famed medical researcher whose flashy red Lamborghini and flamboyant lifestyle in western New York state suggested a highly successful career. But appearances, as this shocking insider account of Pignataro's tailspin from physician to prisoner proves, can be deceiving - and, for the doctor's wife, very nearly deadly. No one was safe if they got in his way. With scalpel, drugs and arsenic, he betrayed every oath a physician makes - until his own schemes backfired. Now the motivations of the classic sociopath are plumbed with chilling accuracy by Ann Rule, along with other shocking true cases, where even slow, deliberate murder is not seen for what it truly is: pure evil.

An absorbing portrayal of true-crime lovers who kill and the men and women who are their victims.

The dark side of love is no fairy tale.... And while we may like to believe that crimes of the heart only victimize those who aren't careful, this page-turning collection of must-read accounts will convince you otherwise. America's #1 true-crime writer, Ann Rule reveals how lovers become predators, how sex and lust can push ordinary people to desperate acts, and how investigators and forensics experts work to unravel the most entangled crimes of passion. Extracting behind-the-scenes details, Rule makes these volatile relationships utterly real, and masterfully re-creates the ill-fated chains of events in such cases as the ex-Marine and martial arts master who seduced vulnerable women and then destroyed their lives...the killer whose calling card was a single bloodred rose...the faithless wife who manipulated and murdered without conscience...the blind date that set the stage for a killer's brutality...and more. In every case, the victim -- young and innocent or older and experienced -- unknowingly trusted a stranger with the sociopathic skill to hide their dark motives, until it was too late to escape a web of deadly lies, fatal promises, and homicidal possession.

From #1 New York Times bestselling true-crime author Ann Rule comes “a convincing portrait of a meticulous criminal mind” (The Washington Post) in this chilling tale about a beautiful and charming widow with a dark side. An idyllic Hawaiian wedding held the promise of a wonderful future for handsome, athletic Chris Northon, an airline pilot, a confirmed bachelor-turned-devoted family man; and Liysa, an acclaimed surf photographer, loving mother, and aspiring Hollywood screenwriter. But few, including Chris, had seen Liysa's other side—her controlling behavior and dark moods, her insatiable hunger for money and property. And no one anticipated the fatal outcome of a family camping trip in an Oregon forest. Liysa soon revealed herself as a victim of domestic abuse that culminated at the campsite, where she shot Chris in self-defense. But crime scene evidence led detectives to wonder if Liysa was a killer, not a victim. Her controversial trial stunned all who thought they knew her. A lifetime of sociopathic manipulations and lies had been expertly hidden behind her façade of perfection—as was her rage to destroy any obstacle to her ultimate happiness, even if it was the man she vowed to love forever.

From America's most celebrated true-crime writer comes the heartbreaking real-life drama of a doomed young woman hopelessly trapped in a web of sexual intrigue, political manipulation, and emotional deception by her charming and successful—but ultimately deadly—lover. The author of fifteen New York Times national bestsellers, Ann Rule, a former Seattle policewoman, has researched thousands of homicides and understands every facet of murder investigation. Now, in the most complex and shocking book of her long career, she delves into the motivation that drove a seemingly successful man to kill, and she explores heretofore unknown aspects of a fatal affair between a beautiful young woman who moved confidently in the heady world of the upper echelons of government and a widely admired millionaire attorney who was an immensely popular political figure. On June 27, 1996, thirty-year-old Anne Marie Fahey, who was the scheduling secretary for the governor of Delaware, had dinner with a man she had been having a secret affair with for more than two years. "Tommy" Capano, forty-seven, was perhaps the most politically powerful man in Wilmington. Son of a wealthy contractor, former state prosecutor, partner in a prestigious law firm, advisor to governors and mayors, Tom Capano had a soft-spoken and considerate manner that endeared him to many. Although recently estranged from his wife, he was a devoted father to his four beautiful young daughters, the trusted son of his widowed mother, and the backbone of his extended family. But sometime after 9:15 that night when Anne Marie and Tom left a Philadelphia restaurant, something terrible happened to Anne Marie. It would be forty-eight hours before her brothers and sisters realized that she had disappeared entirely. Ann Rule brilliantly traces the lives of both Fahey and Capano as she discloses the intimate details of their ill-fated bonding. A vulnerable, trusting woman becomes spellbound by a charming, duplicitous married man, and what begins as a seemingly unremarkable affair is slowly transformed into an obsessive, convoluted, and deadly relationship. Through her impeccable research, Rule peels away layer after layer of deception to reveal a man who lived a secret life for decades, a man so greedy that he would sacrifice anyone to gain what he desired. One of his many mistresses—all of whom were unknown to one another—was Deborah MacIntyre, an attractive and wealthy member of one of Wilmington's oldest families and an administrator of an elite private school. She, too, would become part of the mystery surrounding Anne Marie's disappearance. As three prominent families are destroyed to satisfy one man's jealous obsessions, this unfathomable tragedy becomes a tale that few would believe if it were presented as fiction. Shockingly, it is all true. Destined to become a classic, And Never Let Her Go is a riveting account of forbidden love and murder among the rich and powerful, and a chilling insight into the evil that sometimes hides behind even the most charming façade.

Ann Rule presents a collection of fascinating and disturbing true-crime stories—drawn from her real-life personal files—in this seventeenth volume in the #1 New York Times bestselling Crime Files series. In this gripping collection of investigative accounts from her private archives, “America’s best true-crime writer” (Kirkus Reviews) exposes the most frightening aspect of the murderous mind: the waiting game. Trusted family members or strangers, these cold-blooded killers select their unsuspecting prey, wait for the perfect moment to strike, then turn normality into homicidal mayhem in a matter of moments. Ann Rule will have you seeing the people and places around you with heightened caution as you read these shattering cases, including: - New mothers murdered, their infants kidnapped, in an atrocious baby-selling scheme - The man who kept his criminal past hidden from his wife—and his wife from his mistress—until he coldly disposed of one of them - The beautiful daughter of a State Department official ran away from the privileged world she knew and hitched a ride with a man she didn’t...with fatal consequences - For months, a vicious, rage-filled serial rapist eluded police and terrorized Seattle’s women—when would he strike next, and how far would his violence escalate? - A criminal known for his Houdini-like escapes is serving time for murder in a botched robbery—now the convict is being served dinner in a civilian’s home, where he has one more trick up his sleeve - A long-lost relative who came home to visit, leaving a bloody trail through Washington and Oregon; no one realized how dangerous he and his ladylove were—until it was far too late... With her ability to translate the most complex cases into storytelling “as dramatic and chilling as a bedroom window shattering at night” (The New York Times), Rule expertly analyzes the thoughts and deeds of the sociopath, in this seventeenth essential Crime Files volume.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author and true crime master Ann Rule presents her fifteenth volume of the acclaimed Crime Files series focusing on disturbing stories of people in danger, sometimes from strangers and sometimes from the people they know and love. Walking home on a dark night, you hear footsteps coming up behind you. As they get closer, your heart pounds harder. Is it a dangerous stranger or someone you know and trust? The answer is as simple as turning around, but don’t look behind you…run. With her signature in-depth research and compelling writing, Ann Rule chronicles fateful encounters with the secret predators hiding in plain sight. First in line is a stunning case that spanned thirty years and took one determined detective to four states—ending, finally, in Alaska—where he unraveled not one but two murders. A second case appears to begin and end with the hunt for the Green River Killer, focusing on a Washington State man who was once cleared as a suspect in that deadly chain of homicides. In another true story, a petite woman went to a tavern, looking only for conversation and fun. Instead, she met violent death in the form of a seven-foot tall man who had seemed shy and harmless. You’ll feel a chill as you uncover these and numerous other cases of unfortunate victims who made one tragic mistake: trusting the wrong person—even someone they thought they knew.

Ann Rule brilliantly dissects the convoluted love affairs that all too often end in violence in this unnerving collection drawn from her personal crime files. From traditional courtships to Internet relationships, the passions that rule the heart can also fuel the destructive fires of rage, jealousy and murder. There are stalkers driven by obsession, gay lovers who learn too late that things are not as they appear, and conjugal visits in the shadow of prison walls. Ann Rule goes far beyond the headlines made by these unusual stories to chronicle the downward spiral that begins when promises are broken - a descent that may wrenchingly unfold to a bloody conclusion, or occur so rapidly that the reader wants to cry 'watch out'. The title story deals with an adulterous affair that slashed the trust in a seemingly ideal marriage, the violence that ensued, and a missing-persons search that was ultimately solved with forensic science, computers, and the dedicated kindness of the victim's friends. Powerful because they strike so close to home, the cases in EMPTY PROMISES will leave readers shaken with the realities of love gone terribly wrong.

Rule has culled from her private files the most asked-about homicide cases--riveting accounts of seemingly normal men and women who are compelled by a murderous rage to suddenly lash out at innocent victims.